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A phenomenographical study of the qualitative variation of adventure / wilderness programme experiences among adolscent high school participants in the Western Cape

Zygmont, Conrad Stanislaw (2014-04)

Thesis (PhD)--Stellenbosch University, 2014.

Thesis

ENGLISH ABSTRACT: South African adolescents live in a transitional society during a life stage in which they seek to
stabilise their identity. They face a heritage of widespread violence and poverty, the lived impact of
HIV/AIDS and substance abuse, incessant bombardment by media modelling leisure and vice, an
erratic education system, and strained family and social bonds. Noting these challenges South
African psychology seeks to become more socially relevant and provide formalised opportunities
for positive youth development, supporting the growth of strengths and virtues, and making high
human potential actual. Psychologists should seek to provide interventions that can turn the tide of
social degeneration towards individual and community flourishing. Schools provide an optimal
context for such interventions, with adventure programmes providing a valuable mechanisms by
which holistic development, flow, interdependence, competence, and modelling of pro-social values
can be experienced. This study sought to investigate the different ways in which one such school-based
wilderness adventure programme was experienced and the specific aspects of the programme
responsible for variation in outcomes using the methodology of phenomenography.
Phenomenography is a research method used to map the qualitatively different ways in which
people understand, perceive, or experience various aspects of a specific phenomenon. By
understanding the different ways a phenomenon can be experienced, and identifying the critical
aspects responsible for more or less powerful ways of experiencing the phenomenon,
phenomenography provides a powerful tool for improving educational delivery but had yet to be
used as a method to study psychological interventions. Phenomenographic analysis of the
descriptions of the 27 day adventure programme, in which participants covered 360km on foot,
bicycle and canoe, and engaged in group debriefs, journalling, and a 30 hour solo, revealed four
conceptions of the programme: (a) long gruelling school hike, (b) school initiation / rites of passage programme, (c) once-in-a-lifetime group adventure, or (d) multifaceted learning and development
opportunity. These categories of description are structured hierarchically, from least to most
powerful, and are directly related to the perceived outcomes of the programme. At the lowest level,
perceived processes and outcomes are largely physical, whereas at the highest level participants
descriptions are more complex, and focused more on learning and developmental change that was
accrued during the programme and could be transferred to the participant's home and social context.
There are six major dimensions of variations that were identified in the data that help to understand
the hierarchical relationships between the four identified categories of description. These include (a)
the overall characterisation of the programme, (b) the nature of group interactions and processes, (c)
the nature of the interactions and emotional connection participants had with their adult leaders, (d)
the depth with which participants engaged with their experiences on the programme, (e) the
personal relevance that trials, interactions and accomplishments had for participants, and (f) the
type of growth and learning that was perceived to have accrued as a result of the wilderness
adventure programme. These findings have important implications for both adventure programming
design and implementation, and for research on psychological interventions.